Because he doesn't already have enough things to keep him busy, British adventurer Dave Cornthwaite has launched a new adventurous endeavor designed to not only help other would-be adventurers realize their dreams, but also to raise enough funds to plant one million trees as well. This new endeavor is called Project Origin, and it will focus on smaller, shorter adventures by stand-up paddleboard (SUP) with the expressed goal of making the world a better place through adventure.As you probably already know, over the past few years Dave has been focused on his Expedition 1000 project, during which he is attempting to complete 25 individual journeys of at least 1000 miles (1600 km) or more, without the use of any form of motorized transportation. So far, those projects have taken him across Australia on a skateboard, down the Mississippi River on a paddleboard, and by Hobie Kayak from Oslo to Helsinki. Project Origin will take a similar approach to adventure, but on a smaller scale.
This new undertaking is expected to be a 3-5 year project that will consist of 25 smaller journeys done by SUP. The first of those journeys has just wrapped up, with Dave leading a team of four other individuals on a circumnavigation of the island of Martinique in the Caribbean. That adventure took 12 days to complete, covering a total of 146 miles (235 km) in the process, and wrapping up just this past weekend.
This first leg of Project Origin begins another fund raising effort on the part of Cornthwaite. This time out, he's attempting to raise enough money to plant more than one million trees. His efforts will aid a variety of organizations across the globe, so that the tree plantings will take place in different locations and environments. To that end, Dave has launched a Just Giving campaign, with proceeds going to the Tree Aid organization.
Project Origin isn't just about conducting smaller adventures to raise funds for the trees however, as there is a sub-component called #Begin that will be of interest to a lot of people as well. #Begin is Dave's attempt to give back to the adventure community by helping 200 other people to get to the starting line of their very first adventure. He'll offer support and advice to those would-be adventurers, and in return they'll help raise funds for the cause as well.
You can learn a lot more about Dave, Expedition 1000, Project Origin, and #Begin on his website and Facebook page. And if you'd like to get a glimpse of what the first SUP journey of Project Origin was all about, check out the video below. This looks like it will be another fantastic endeavor from someone who has a long track record of conducting great adventures, and encouraging others to find their own.
